Arvo Pärt has dominated the classical charts for years. In particular his mysterious composition Spiegel im Spiegel for violin and piano has succeeded in moving an exceptionally broad audience with its innocent simplicity. But Pärt is more than sweetly babbling melodies, as Ralph van Raat knows all too well. Previously, in an enthusiastically received CD recording, he had already illuminated the early, often harsher-sounding piano work of the Estonian grand master. Once again he criss-crosses Pärt’s world, which ranges from brutal avant-garde to sweet ‘tintinnabuli’. There are also excursions into Bach and Shostakovich, both of whom have had an important influence on Pärt’s development. In short: a refreshing insight into the growth of a surprisingly versatile composer.